Test For Air Leaks and Drafts to Reduce Energy Loss

Properly sealing cracks and openings in you home can significantly reduce heating and cooling costs throughout the year. You may already know where some air leakage occurs in your home, such as an under-the-door draft, but you’ll need to find the less obvious gaps to properly seal your home.

Here are several tests that can be used to check for air leaks:

Window Seal Check – Shut the window on a piece of paper. If paper can be pulled without tearing paper, than window should be resealed.

Visual Gap Check – After daylight hours, shine a light through closed window and door seam and have a partner confirm if light is visible on other side.

Hot/Cold Air Check – Use your hands to feel around door and window seal checking for cold or hot air coming in through a leak.

Common areas to check for leaks are between brick and wood siding, between foundation and walls, and between the chimney and siding. In addition, you should inspect around these areas for leaks and drafts:

Door and window frames

Mail chutes

Electrical and gas service entrances

Cable TV and phone lines

Outdoor water faucets

Where dryer vents pass through walls

Bricks, siding, stucco, and foundation

Air conditioners

Vents and fans

Home Pressurization Test

If you are having difficulty locating leaks and drafts, you may want to conduct a basic building pressurization test:

First, close all exterior doors, windows and fireplace flues.

Turn off all combustion appliances such as gas burning furnaces and water heaters.

Then turn on all exhaust fans (generally located in the kitchen and bathrooms) or use a large window fan to suck the air out of the rooms.

This test increases infiltration through cracks and leaks, making them easier to detect. You can use incense sticks or your damp hand to locate these leaks. If you use incense sticks, moving air will cause the smoke to drift, and if you use your damp hand, any drafts will feel cool to your hand.